Bárbara Guedes obtained her Undergraduate degree in Biology from the University of Porto's Faculty ofSciences in 2019, she further distinguished herself by completing a Master's degree in Cellular and MolecularBiology in 2022. During her undergraduate studies, Bárbara had the opportunity to participate in an internshipproject in the Phenotypic Evolution group (I3S) under the mentorship of Dr. Jorge Vieira and Dr. Cristina Vieira,where she identified and characterised chromosomal inversions in Drosophila montana, expanding herbioinformatics knowledge. Her academic journey continued with a Master's Thesis conducted under thesupervision of Dr. Sandra Quinteira and Dr. Olga Lage at the Microbial Ecophysiology Lab (LEMUP). In thisproject, Bárbara evaluated the microbiological quality and food safety of ready-to-eat oysters, assessed thesusceptibility patterns of bacterial isolates to clinically relevant antibiotics, searched for antibiotic resistancegenes and identified members of the Planctomycetota bacterial group, which are recognised for beingresistant to numerous antibiotics and hence capable of spreading antibiotic resistance genes. Through the useof a variety of methodologies, Bárbara gained expertise in data analysis and gained valuable knowledge in thefields of microbiology, molecular biology, and cellular biology. Following her Msc Bárbara joined the foodindustry by working as a intern at Cogubelo, a company dedicated to the cultivation and retailing of exoticmushroom species. At Cogubelo she expand her understanding of the industrial environment. Herresponsibilities included planning production studies for increased efficiency and cost reduction, conductingsterilization tests, evaluating packaging solutions and implementing pest control and hygiene plans. She alsocollaborated in planning an automated industrial line, conducting market inquiries to ensure optimal quality,price, and deadlines. During her internship, Bárbara undertook the supervision of a high school student, beingresponsible with instructing her various laboratory techniques.Barbara has THREE ARTICLES PUBLISHED IN PEER-REVIEWED INTERNATIONAL JOURNALS, two of which asthe first author. In 2022, she won an honourable mention for her oral presentation at the InternationalCongress of Microbiology in Portuguese language - Microbiologia 2022. Currently, Bárbara is a 1st year PhD student in the Microbiology and Biotechnology in Aquaculture (MBAqua) group at the Interdisciplinary Centre of Marine and Environmental Research (CIIMAR), University of Porto. Her research is centred on sustainable fish vaccination strategies to prevent and manage bacterial infections in aquaculture. She focuses on the development of next-generation oral vaccines using Bacillus subtilis spores as innovative delivery vehicles (SporoVaccines). Additionally, she investigates the use of molecular adjuvants, a relatively unexplored approach in oral immunization, to boost immune responses and enhance vaccine efficacy. By combining SporoVaccines with molecular adjuvants, her research aims to optimize the performance of oral vaccines. This innovative approach contributes to the advancement of sustainable aquaculture by reducing reliance on antibiotics, improving fish welfare, and supporting the production of safe, high-quality aquaculture products.